Razing the Walls
by Ms.Meghan
Summary: Lu Ten finds himself conflicted between duty and his growing feelings for one of his soldiers. Meanwhile, the push towards Ba Sing Se begins. Lu Ten/OC
1. Chapter 1

**Hello. This is about the third time I have rewritten this story. I haven't been happy with it, so it keeps getting trashed. Hopefully, this one turns out better. Anyway, this story will be told in first person by at least two characters. The first is my original character, Private Araiya Cho, and the second will be Sergeant Lu Ten. The story is about the year or so leading up to General Iroh's siege at Ba Sing Se.  
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** I really wanted to write a story that humanizes the Fire Nation soldiers. I also wanted to write a story about Lu Ten, because so little is known about him, so this is the result: a soldier who falls in love with Lu Ten. I try not to fuss with canon too much, so the Aang gang will make few, if any, appearances. There will be Zuko, however, but most of the story is about the soldiers and the events surrounding the siege on Ba Sing Se.  
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** Please take the time to review if you can. I very much appreciate critique, and I like incorporating suggestions into stories if I am able to. Also, please correct any improper usages of military terminology if you find them. Thanks much.**

**Also, I don't own Avatar blah blah**

**Rated T for occasional language  
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**Chapter 1: The Breathing Forest**

I looked over the rail of the riverboat wearily. The last stretch on the way to the Fire Nation colony of Jiagu was said to be the most dangerous. The banks of the river were thickly forested, perfect for hiding attackers. Staring into the woods, I could see slight movements, swift and acute like a stalking animal, but deathly silent. The weather was calm, and there was no wind, but the trees seemed to breathe and reach toward our boat. The earth on the side of the river was sharp, and the water itself was murky and sluggish. It was clear to me that we were not wanted here.

I tried to be objective, however, and assess for realistic threats. The water was probably shallow, and the river was not wide enough to protect us from land-based earthbending attacks. If we were to get stuck, we would be at the mercy of even a single earthbender. I had never seen an earthbender in the wild before; the only time I had seen one at all had been during training. He was a massive man with wild eyes, a prisoner of war brought back to the Fire Nation to expose new cadets to earthbending. I didn't actually fight against him, but I wouldn't have wanted to. Despite being chained and heavily guarded, he was able to knock out the drill sergeant and a few cadets. My friend and guard duty partner Fai was one of them. His arm had been badly broken by a falling rock. The doctors said he was lucky to be able to use it, let alone return to the army as a firebender. He recovered, and is still a seriously talented firebender, but he was unmistakably nervous as he looked towards the banks of the river. His arms were crossed defiantly, but his eyebrows were furrowed in agitation.

"You're thinking about that monster from training, aren't you?" I asked him.

"I can't help it. It would be so easy for him to sink this ship and kill us all," he replied.

"Not every earthbender can possibly be as strong as he was," I added, trying to make him feel better. "And he was probably driven mad by being a prisoner, forced to perform for soldiers that were going to be sent to invade his homeland."

"Imagine how that would feel. I think I would go mad too."

"Enough empathy for the enemy. We'll be to the colony soon. When we join the Sergeant Lu Ten and the other platoons, we will be more than a match for the earthbending resistance," I said. The incident at training had been horrifying for many of us, especially Fai, but dwelling on our fear would not help us survive our first deployment.

Fai nodded, and we returned to our silent vigil, but he was still very tense. I couldn't help but be nervous too. He was easily the best firebender in the platoon, probably better than many officers too, but I was pretty near the bottom, even though he had been tutoring me. My skills in hand to hand combat are good; I'm fairly quick and agile, but that wouldn't help me much against an earthbender who could literally take the ground out from under me and crush me with it. Fortunately, we didn't have much time left to muse about our enemy or the unwelcoming environment. The crew started hollering directions for docking, and when I looked over the bow of the ship, I could see the Fire Nation flags flickering on the tents in the camp.

I nudged Fai, who was still zoning out, and we headed down below where our commanding officer Sergeant Han was instructing us to get in formation to prepare for arrival.

"Soldiers, I understand that you have been traveling for a long while to reach the colony, and some of you are anxious, but the commanding officer at the camp, Lieutenant Kohzo, does not put up with insubordination or other forms of general naughtiness. Act out, and you will be probably be discharged," Sergeant Han had warned. For an officer, he was patient, almost brotherly at times, and most of us felt as though he had our best interests at heart.

We lined up in formation. Fai was at the front, I was toward the back, but I saw his shoulders tense when the boat crashed to a halt. We could hear the crew shouting through the hull, an eerie ringing noise, when they opened the hatch. Sergeant Han strode down the ramp, and we followed, marching in unison. He stopped several paces away from where the two resident officers were waiting in front of another group of soldiers. The ranks looked sparse. I wondered if it was because Lieutenant Kohzo discharged half of his soldiers or if they'd been smashed.

Sergeant Han bowed to the two officers. The other sergeant returned the bow. Lieutenant Kohzo acknowledged him with a nod. I could tell already that this officer was an asshole, probably more so than Sergeant Han had let on. He was short and wide, like a grandfather, but his face was scrunched into the most severe scowl I'd ever seen, completely humorless, and his stance wide and rigid. I fixated on his deeply furrowed eyebrows as he began to address us.

"You have been called to the colony to help us suppress growing resistance from the earthbenders in the area. They have largely let the civilians be, but they have been attacking our camp consistently, disrupting supply ships, trade, and intelligence. Their goal is to force us to leave, and take our settlement with us, but we will not let that happen. I understand that this is your first deployment. Therefore, you are still not considered soldiers in my eyes until you prove yourselves in battle. When you are not in battle, you will be on guard duty or else you will be quiet. Those are the only rules of this camp, and you will follow them." He paused for a few minutes, letting us soak in his brilliant motivational briefing, the continued, gesturing to the officer beside him. "This is Sergeant Lu Ten, my most trusted officer. His word is my word. Do not disobey it." The strikingly handsome sergeant smiled softly, which startled me, apparently enough so that I lurched forward slightly and bumped into the soldier in front of me. He jabbed me in the gut, and I reeled backward, crashing into the soldier behind me. I straightened myself out as quickly as possible, but the disturbance did not go unnoticed by the lieutenant. He glared straight at me, his one eyebrow slashing through his angry face.

"Get up here!" he demanded. The soldiers to my right instantly cleared a path for me. I approached the lieutenant and bowed low, hoping to mitigate his anger.

"Remove your faceplate."

I slid the white faceplate from my helmet, trying furiously to keep my gaze steady.

"I sincerely apologize for my insolence, sir. It will not-"

"Shut your mouth. You will not speak unless spoken to first. What is your name?"

"Araiya Cho, sir."

"Private Araiya Cho." He repeated my name then paused, as if to think. "I do not usually issue warnings, but since you are the daughter of a general whom I know personally, you will be granted a second chance. Do not dishonor your father or your nation with your foolishness. Do I make myself clear?"

"Absolutely, sir." I bowed again and slid my faceplate back into my helmet. As shaken as I was, I could not help but steal a glance at the sergeant. He was young, his black hair pulled tightly into the traditional topknot except for one stray lock that fell by his ear. His eyes were lovely gold, searching, like the eyes of a hawk, but warm and benevolent. He was looking at me. I could swear that he seemed concerned. Fortunately, I had my mask on or he surely would have been offended my stupid, drooling stare.

"You are dismissed," the lieutenant hollered suddenly to the platoon. I hesitated. "That means you as well, private." I bowed again and hustled after my platoon, imagining the thrashing I would give Siyama for elbowing me so hard. I had almost caught up with them when I heard someone call my name from behind.

"Private Araiya."

I froze and slowly turned around. It was Sergeant Lu Ten. I bowed quickly.

"Yes, sir?"

He smiled kindly, and I could feel my heart slamming against my breastplate. He began to walk, and nodded for me to do the same.

"I want to give you some context for the lieutenant's harshness. The earthbending resistance has grown more difficult to manage lately. They have started to attack the camp using guerilla tactics, killing soldiers in the middle of the night or when we are off guard. A sergeant was killed not long ago, and the lieutenant feels responsible. His reputation is on the line, and he is counting on the reinforcements, like your platoon, to help end this."

"I understand, sir, but you don't have to justify his actions. No offense was taken."

"I just do not want your morale to suffer on your first day. We need our soldiers strong and mentally fit, or we risk losing our hold here."

"As long as I can fight for my nation, my morale will be high."

"Very good."

I bowed once more and he left, leaving me completely speechless as I dragged myself to where my fellow soldiers were beginning to set up tents. I took my helmet off and placed it on the ground near the others and walked over to where my friend Kim was struggling to hold a support pole steady. I scanned the area for Siyama, hoping I could find him and help him have an accident, but he was nowhere in sight, so I grabbed the pole and helped Kim adjust it to the proper place.

"Thanks, Rai," she said, straining from the effort. Once we planted it in the ground and connected it to the pole at the top, we stood back to let another group of soldiers begin to lay the canvas over the frame.

"That sergeant is super sexy," Kim declared, wiping the sweaty strands of hair off of her face. "If I were you, I would have passed the hell out." I shrugged. I didn't dare tell her that I was pretty close, or I would never hear the end of it. "Did you get a good look at him?"

Although slightly inept in other areas, Kim was a fierce and capable firebender. Her position was close to the front of the formation. I would not have been surprised if she told me that she gawked at him the whole time.

"Nope," I replied. "I was too busy trying not to get my head pulled off by the lieutenant. What a tightass."

"Well hopefully he's a good leader and will keep us from getting squished."

I glanced into the surrounding forest. The sun was setting, staining the sky bright pink and casting heavy shadows among the trees. Darkness seemed to be creeping from the woods towards our camp, threatening to snuff out our fires and bury us alive. I could almost feel the breath of the guerillas hidden in the trees against the back of my neck. I shuddered.

"Cold?" Kim asked.

"Yeah, and tired. I think I'm going to claim a tent and get some rest."

"I'll be one of your tent buddies," she said. "Let's go ask Fai to join us."

She seized my arm and began pulling me towards a group of soldiers towards the center of the camp. I let her drag me without any resistance, glad to be led away from the ominous breathing of the woods.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2 is in Lu Ten's POV. **

**Critique welcome.**

**Chapter 2: Attack by the River**

None of us saw the attack coming. There had been no attacks for weeks, and none of our intelligence was out of the ordinary; in fact, we had been getting reports of desertions and disorder among the guerrilla forces. Nothing about it fit the pattern that the guerrillas had been following. They had been attacking in the middle of the night, presumably expecting the highest percentage of the soldiers to be resting. They also knew that our firebending is weakest at night, not but much, but these attackers are opportunists. They lack numbers, we assume, so they have changed their approach. They must have realized that in fact we had increased our guard late at night. The most recent attack occurred just before dawn when the sun was beginning to peek over the horizon. The night sentries had begun to return to their tents, and their replacements had not returned, leaving some posts around the camp empty. The attackers shot poison darts at the soldiers who had remained, a tactic they had not used before. The earthbenders then started smashing the tents indiscriminately and lighting them on fire with torches with soldiers trapped in them.

Mine was not one of the first hit, which surprised me, as they targeted officers first, so when I heard the noise coming from outside, I ran from my tent to confront the attackers. The scene in the camp was gruesome. The attackers, there were perhaps 30 of them, were wearing simple black suits and dark green bandanas across their faces, hurling earth everywhere as if in a craze, completely demolishing the inexperienced soldiers. Skirmishes had broken out between groups of guerrillas and our soldiers. I saw several hands twitching beneath piles of earth and many disembodies helmets. It was oddly silent, but there was utter chaos, unlike anything I had seen in the colonies. The mad guerrillas ruthlessly pummeled our soldiers, flinging the earth, rending the ground, and crushing the confused, frightened soldiers. I was nearly awestruck by the vehemence of the attack. The guerrillas were making their last stand.

I ordered my thoughts by giving myself a target. In previous attacks, I had been able to single out the guerrilla leader based on a sash he had tied on his upper arm and the manner in which he signaled to the others. I would immediately engage him. I would have known him without the sash by now, but he was nowhere to be seen, so I ran towards a particularly powerful earthbender who had just buried three soldiers near the tree line and engaged him instead. We had not been fighting more than a few minutes when he faked me out; I had been anticipating a forceful attack, so I stepped forward to meet it, but instead, I fumbled over a small ridge of earth that had been placed in my path. I was caught off guard for no more than a fraction of a second, but that was enough time for another guerrilla to seize me by the back of my armor and pull me into his chest. This man was not much larger that I was, but I could tell from his presence that he was a powerful fighter. I placed elbow against his chest to push away from him, but froze when I felt the taut pressure and chill of metal at my throat.

"Don't move, sergeant. If you do not struggle, I will not have to kill you," the man instructed. His voice was cold and deadpan. He took a step backward to pull me into the forest but stopped when a group of soldiers saw what he was doing and rushed to my aid. One of them looked as though he was going to attack, but stopped abruptly when the guerrilla adjusted the angle of the blade at my throat and pushed it tighter against my skin.

"Soldier," the attacker said. "Don't be stupid. I will kill the sergeant if you make another move." I twitched, and he pressed the blade tighter still. At this point, I was nervous.

The soldiers backed off, except for one, who swiftly pulled the mask off of his helmet. It was Private Cho.

"If there is anyone in this camp that would be worth taking hostage, it's me," she said defiantly. I was taken aback at her brazenness.

The guerrilla grunted in disbelief. "This is the future Crown Prince of the Fire Nation, Sergeant Lu Ten. Who the hell do you think you are?"

The private scoffed derisively. "You mixed up your sergeants. You all killed the wrong one. Lu Ten is dead. That is Sergeant Han, son of a peasant." I felt my captor tense. The private's bluff was just as likely to get me killed as give me a chance to escape. "I am Private Araiya Cho, daughter of Lian Cho, the Lieutenant General in charge of colonization and territorial expansion in the Earth Kingdom. If you want a pawn, it is me."

"Why should you offer yourself as a captive, and how do I know you are telling the truth?" the guerilla hissed. I saw the other guerrillas fighting to keep soldiers away from us. They must have been instructed to do so. It occurred to me just how meticulously this attack had been planned, and I could tell that the captor was incredulous. He seemed reluctant to believe that anything could have gone wrong. The private furrowed her eyebrows in extreme agitation.

"How dare you accuse me of lying when my commander's life is at stake! It is my duty as a soldier of the Fire Nation to defend my commanding officers by any means necessary, even if it requires me to lay down my life. His safety is all that matters to me."

"This wasn't part of the plan. I was told to bring back Sergeant Lu Ten. This man is a sergeant and I'm leaving-"

"You're wasting your time! That is _**NOT**_ Lu Ten!" she shouted furiously, taking an aggressive and daring lunge forward. Her raw anger was startling. I felt the guerrilla hesitate, pull his blade slightly away from my neck and loosen his hold on me, seemingly confused. This was all I needed to capitalize on his frustration. I yanked myself free, slipping under his blade and connected with a fire attack on the side of his head. He fell instantly and did not move or get up.

The private was breathing heavily. She looked at me intensely, the fire around us shimmering in her slate grey eyes. She appeared to be deeply sad, but holding back some great joy at the same time, and a shy, hesitant smile crossed her face before she slid her mask back onto her helmet becoming a soldier again.

"Sergeant," she said flatly. "The other two officers are dead."

I realized that it was now my responsibility to defend what was left of the camp. I tried frantically to assess the situation, reaffirming my suspicion that this was going to be the decisive battle against the guerrillas. We were going to win, or be driven from the colony, and it was on me alone to rally my soldiers amidst this chaos. As I hastily surveyed the camp, I noticed that the remaining attackers were all more or less away from the tree line. They probably did not realize yet that their plan had failed. Instantly, I sent a wall of fire along the edge of the forest, the first step to cutting off their escape.

"All of you," I instructed the soldiers before me. "Guard this threshold. Take out anyone who tries to pass it." I was not confident that these three would be able to secure the escape route, but it was preferable to leaving it unguarded. I snatched a helmet from a dead soldier and put it on, trying not to draw attention to myself as an officer. I attacked the guerrillas wildly, killing several myself. My confident energy must have passed along to the other soldiers because they had organized themselves for the first time since the attack began.

"Drive them to the river!" I shouted. It seemed aimless at first, but the other soldiers caught on and as the sun began illuminating the sky, infusing us with confidence, my soldiers had formed a line, blasting the earthbenders back. Thirty of us cornered ten of them along the slippery mud banks of the river. There was a temporary lapse in the battle, each side sizing up the other, or in the case of the guerrillas, perhaps preparing to die. I stepped forward out of the line and sent a jet of fire at the group. One of them dropped and three toppled into the water. I did not see them surface. As the line of firebenders followed my lead, I turned and walked away from them and towards the burning camp to put out the fires and begin counting the dead.


End file.
